Why is Jesus portrayed as White?

t-wings said:

I dont think it really matters, white one should be fine as well

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Neither would be better.
"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, (....) "

Hieronymus said:

Neither would be better.
"Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, (....) "

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ok

jovanovic said:

Jesus in fact looked more like this:

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This image is nothing more than another scientific mockery against the Christian faith.

For an accurate depiction of the Christ refer to the shroud of Turin....

IS JESUS WHITE!!! NO. You can't live in or walk all over jerusalem and the surrounding desert regions without having a really DARK SUN TAN. :]

The question should be asked: why doesn't the Bible tell us anything regarding Jesus appearance let alone His skin color? Nothing at all in the New Testament. About the only thing inn this regard we can find is in the Old Testament and really tells us very little, and nothing regarding His skin color, the closes thing Isaiah 53:2:

Isaiah 53:2 King James Version (KJV)
2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.

Doesn't say much about His appearance and certainly not a thing about His skin color. The fact that He was a carpenter and worked with His hands and probably spent a lot of time in the outdoors you'd think he'd be of a darker complexion. Jerry Seinfeld, although of Jewish heritage was not born and raised in Israel and not one of the field workers. Israeli common people tend to be on the darker side. FWIW. Tow things that God does not tell us in the Bible regarding Jesus is what color He was and when He was born. There's a reason for that I believe.

All the pictures we see depicting Jesus with blue eyes, whict skin aand long hair are artists depictions and not factual renditions.

2tim_215 said:

The question should be asked: why doesn't the Bible tell us anything regarding Jesus appearance let alone His skin color? Nothing at all in the New Testament. About the only thing inn this regard we can find is in the Old Testament and really tells us very little, and nothing regarding His skin color, the closes thing Isaiah 53:2:

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Because it is about the heart condition not the color of ones skin. :]

rockytopva said:

For an accurate depiction of the Christ refer to the shroud of Turin....

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If you buy into the shroud of Turin I've got some ocean front property in Montana to sell you.

LovebirdsFlying said:

The trouble I have with the Shroud of Turin is that it's in one piece.
Reference John 20:6-7, quoted here from the King James: Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie, And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.
That would indicate that that His grave clothes were in at least two pieces.

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Most of the folks who venerate the shroud of Turin aren't likely to let the scriptures get in their way.

I have seen Jesus portrayed as black as well as Asian, and of course kind of pasty white by Mormons. People like to think he looks like they looked. It is his inner person and character we are to really focus on, not his skin color, dress, or how long and how he parted his hair. The Book of Revelation pictures Him in glory, unlike the Gospels. Again, it is Who He is that is important, not so much what He looks like.

Many of the painters in the Medieval and Rennisance periods had probably never seen anyone from the Middle East. They painted what they knew which would mean a white Jesus.

Archivist said:

Many of the painters in the Medieval and Rennisance periods had probably never seen anyone from the Middle East. They painted what they knew which would mean a white Jesus.

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Those same painters lived in a very anti-Semitic culture and portrayed Jewish people as ugly, misshapen, diseased and disfigured. The Jew, Jesus, could not be portrayed that way.

rockytopva said:

This image is nothing more than another scientific mockery against the Christian faith.

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Not white enough for you?

jovanovic said:

Jesus was a brown man from Middle East. Why then is he portrayed as a white man worldwide? A typical picture of Jesus looks like this:

Jesus in fact looked more like this:

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Icons and images of Christ depend on the culture. In Ethiopia traditional images of Christ look like this:


In places in East Asia He looks like this:


Jesus is depicted in Christian art and iconography as similar to the people producing the iconography and the art. Jesus is depicted as white and European by Europeans; Jesus is depicted as black and African by Africans. Jesus was neither white nor black--but the point of sacred images isn't to be literal, but to depict theological truth.

In the Incarnation the Word became human.

-CryptoLutheran

I think its impossible to say for certain what Jesus looked like.

Being the son of God means he does not fit in to todays world's obsession with racial identity and could be literally of any race that God chose at that time. However, we know that Mary was from Nazareth and that Nazareth was a Jewish settlement with no real gentile population. Perhaps it is best to try and look at what the population of Nazareth in general looked like, that would give you an idea of what Mary looked like and PERHAPS what Jesus looked like, if this is of huge concern to you. There are pharaohs from circa 1400BC with European DNA and Jesus was from a region where Romans occupied, make of that what you will but whatever skin colour you want to paint him in then go right ahead.

jovanovic said:

google search "coptic jesus" gave me white jesus:
coptic jesus - Google Search

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When searching Coptic icons, my result was this:
Coptic icons - Google Search

Jesus isn't depicted "white".

-CryptoLutheran

Marvin Knox said:

If you believe all the hooeee Burpo pedals you also believe Jesus rides a rainbow colored horse and the angel Gabriel sits at the side of God on His throne.

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I don't remember anything in the book or movie about Jesus riding a rainbow colored horse. The Bible doesn't say who is seated on the left side of God but there are some places to the left and right of Jesus, who is on the right side of God, prepared for someone.

If you believe the painting by Akiane was done after seeing Jesus in a vision from God you have to believe any other new age tripe she pedals. If Burpo buys into her thing - he certainly lacks wisdom considering he spent time with God.

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One thing can be true even if other things are not. What "new age tripe" are you talking about?

Why is it that these folks who are sent back by God to tell us all about it don't seem to present the need to believe the gospel to be saved from judgment to come. Nor - for that matter - do most even mention the judgment to come.

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Just relax and cross over. Jesus will meet you in a white light with a big hug and all will be well for everyone on earth when they end this life in the flesh.
"NOT"
Just sayin!

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Where has Colton Burpo said "just relax and cross over," that belief in the gospel is not necessary or any of that other stuff?

Jesus has been portrayed in many different ways in various parts of the world. We know He actually looked like Israeli men of today.

Kit Sigmon said:

My own studies and the books I have reveal that Jesus was portrayed having brown/black skin tone up until the 4th century.

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About the time of the fall of the western Empire. As I said, most of the painters of that era in Europe wouldn't have seen someone from the Middle East. Prior to the fall of Rome they most certainly would have interacted with people from all over the Empire.